The 2016–17 Croatian First Football League (also known as 1. HNL; officially styled MAXtv Prva liga for sponsorship reasons) was the 26th season of the Croatian First Football League, the national championship for men's association football teams in Croatia, since its establishment in 1992. The fixtures were announced on 15 June 2016. The season started on 15 July 2016 and finished on 27 May 2017. The league was contested by 10 teams. Rijeka won their first ever title, which broke Dinamo Zagreb's dominance of eleven consecutive titles.
Teams On 22 April 2016, Croatian Football Federation announced that the first stage of licensing procedure for 2016–17 season was complete. For the 2016–17 Prva HNL, only seven clubs were issued a top level license: Dinamo Zagreb, Hajduk Split, Istra 1961, Lokomotiva, Rijeka, Slaven Belupo and NK Zagreb. These clubs were also issued a license for participating in UEFA competitions. In the second stage of licensing, clubs that were not licensed in the first stage appealed the decision. On 23 May 2016, it was announced that all remaining Prva HNL clubs were granted top level license. Only two teams from Druga HNL acquired the top level license: Cibalia and Šibenik.
The following teams participated in the 2016–17 Prva HNL.
Stadia and locations StadiumCityHome clubLicensed club(s)Capacity Maksimir Zagreb Dinamo Zagreb 38,079 Poljud Split Hajduk Split 34,448 Gradski vrt Osijek Osijek 22,050 Stadion HNK Cibalia Vinkovci Cibalia 9,958 Aldo Drosina Pula Istra 1961 8,923 Kranjčevićeva ZagrebZagreb Lokomotiva 8,850Rujevica Rijeka Rijeka 6,134 ŠRC Zaprešić Zaprešić Inter Zaprešić 5,228 Park Mladeži Split RNK Split 4,075 Gradski stadion Koprivnica Slaven Belupo 3,134
Personnel and kits Club Manager Captain Kit manufacturer SponsorsCibalia JakoDinamo Zagreb Puma Hajduk Split Macron TommyInter Zaprešić Joma Veleučilište Baltazar ZaprešićIstra 1961 Nike Croatia OsiguranjeLokomotiva Nike CroduxOsijek Nike OsječkoRijeka Jako Sava OsiguranjeSlaven Belupo adidas BelupoRNK Split Jako Skladgradnja
Managerial changes Team Outgoing manager Manner of departure Date of vacancy Replaced by Date of appointment Position in table Lokomotiva Signed by Persepolis Pre-season Hajduk Split Removed from position Pre-season Dinamo Zagreb Signed by Al-Nassr Pre-season Lokomotiva Removed from position (caretaker) – Pre-season Istra 1961 Resigned 6th RNK Split Resigned 10th Lokomotiva (caretaker) Signing of Ivković – 7th Dinamo Zagreb Resigned (caretaker) – 3rd Dinamo Zagreb (caretaker) Signing of Petev – Petev new head coach. gnkdinamo.hr. 29 September 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2017. 3rd Lokomotiva Signed by Al-Faisaly 6th Cibalia Removed from position Siniša Sesar (caretaker) – 9th Istra 1961 Signed by Shenzhen (caretaker) – 5th Hajduk Split Removed from position 3rd Istra 1961 (caretaker) Signing of Tot – 8th Cibalia Siniša Sesar (caretaker) Signing of Pacult – 10th RNK Split Resigned 9th Cibalia Resigned 10th Istra 1961 Removed from position (caretaker)– 7th
League table
Results Each team plays home-and-away against every other team in the league twice, for a total of 36 matches each played.
Relegation play-offs At the end of the season, ninth placed Cibalia qualified for a two-legged relegation play-off tie against Gorica, runners-up of the 2016–17 Croatian Second Football League.
First leg
Second leg
Cibalia won 5–1 on aggregate.
Statistics Top scorers
RankPlayerClubGoals1 Márkó FutácsHajduk Split182 El Arabi Hillel SoudaniDinamo Zagreb173 Franko AndrijaševićRijeka16 Armin HodžićDinamo Zagreb5 Muzafer EjupiOsijek146 Alexander GorgonRijeka127 Roman BezjakRijeka11 Ante ErcegHajduk Split Mario GavranovićRijeka Jakov PuljićInter Zaprešić
Awards Annual awards AwardWinner ClubPlayer of the Season Franko AndrijaševićRijekaManager of the Season Matjaž KekRijekaYoung Player of the Season Lovro MajerLokomotiva Team of the YearGoalkeeper Dominik Livaković (Dinamo Zagreb)Defence Stefan Ristovski (Rijeka) Marko Lešković (Dinamo Zagreb) Josip Elez (Rijeka) Borna Barišić (Osijek)Midfield Hillal Soudani (Dinamo Zagreb) Josip Mišić (Rijeka) Franko Andrijašević (Rijeka) Filip Bradarić (Rijeka)Attack Mario Gavranović (Rijeka) Márkó Futács (Hajduk Split)
Attendances
# Club Average 1 Hajduk 8,340 2 Rijeka 4,757 3 Dinamo Zagreb 4,482 4 Osijek 3,118 5 Cibalia 1,739 6 Istra 1,715 7 Slaven 1,096 8 Zaprešić 851 9 Radnički 755 10 Lokomotiva 644Source:
See also 2016–17 Croatian Second Football League 2016–17 Croatian Third Football League 2016–17 Croatian Football Cup
References
External links Official website Prva HNL at UEFA.com